The Mayor of Juba City Council, Stephen Wani Michael, on Friday donated six hundred and fifty thousand South Sudanese pounds (SSP) to thirteen Counties of Jubek State.
The donation was announced during the closing of the three-day Commissioners’ Forum in Juba. According to the Mayor, each of thirteen county commissioners will receive an amount of fifty thousand SSP as transport allowance and for facilitating other activities.
Mr. Wani said his office gave money to the commissioners as appreciation for their good work, and also for the support of the first Jubek State Commissioner’s forum, which took place in Juba last week.
Speaking during the closing session of the three-day forum, which was organised by the State’s Ministry of Local Government, Law Enforcement and Parliamentary Affairs, the Mayor said the commissioners should identify the problems that are facing the citizens in Jubek State.
He praised the organisers of the forum, whom he said were able to bring them and the local government officials together for the first time since Jubek State was established last year. Jubek is one of the thirty two states in South Sudan.
“Juba City Council is the mother of the thirteen counties in Jubek State. In case of anything, they will help as they work together,” Mr. Wani said.
“We have issues of land, but we have land Act 2009, Local Government Act, but we have problems and we want to know who will solve our problems and the way forward,” he added.
The Deputy Governor of Jubek State, Francis Latio, in a closing remark at the end of the Commissioners’ Forum, said Jubek State wants to be among the top states in the country in terms of development.
He urged the citizens of the state to accept the National Dialogue because it will help the communities end their sufferings. “The National Dialogue is important for us, the people of Jubek Sate,” Mr. Latio said.
On his part, Jubek State’s Minister for Local Government, Law Enforcement and Parliamentary Affairs, Isaac Ribek Benjamin, the organiser of the Commissioners’ Forum, said the local government is based on decentralised system of governance, where the local government institutions are hierarchically patterned.
He explained that the constitution divides the levels of government into three; the National Government, State Government and Local Government Councils. The Minister said the responsibility of the local government is to make recommendations for organisations and establishment of local government councils amongst other functions.
Mr. Ribek stressed that there is need for the establishment of good inter inter-governmental linkages to harmonies the working relationship between the people and the local government at the level of councils and other government’s institutions at state and national levels.
Via JM